J&K govt will support Centre’s decision on Indus Water Treaty: Nirmal Singh

With the Centre hinting at revising the Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan, Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh on Saturday said the state will fully support whatever decision is taken by the Union government on the 1960 agreement.

“The treaty has caused huge loss to Jammu and Kashmir” as the people of the state cannot fully utilise the waters of various rivers, particularly Chenab in Jammu, for agricultural and other activities, Singh, who is in the city to attend the BJP National Council, said.

“The state government will support whatever decision is taken by the central government on Indus Waters Treaty,” he said. The people of Jammu and Kashmir were already raising the issue of loss to the state on account of Indus Waters Treaty. If the central government takes any decision in this regard, the state government will definitely support it, he said.

“We will support any move which will benefit the people of the state and any step that puts Pakistan under pressure,” Singh said.

India had earlier this week made it clear that “mutual trust and cooperation” was important for such a treaty to work. The assertion came amid calls that the government should scrap the water distribution pact to mount pressure on Pakistan in the aftermath of the Uri terror attack.

“It cannot be a one-sided affair,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup had said when asked if the government will rethink on the Indus Waters Treaty given the growing strain between the two countries.

Singh also hit out at Pakistan for its ‘failure’ to honour its agreements with India, particularly the Simla Agreement signed in 1972.

“There is the Simla Agreement which Pakistan does not honour, there is Lahore declaration between the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and the then President of Pakistan General Parvez Musharraf in which it was agreed upon that Pakistan will not use its land under its occupation to be used for sponsoring, aiding and abetting terrorism against India.

“They do not honour this and instead are violating the declaration by sponsoring terrorism,” the BJP leader said.

“If they can violate such agreements and declarations why should we honour such treaties…They want India to honour this treaty on the basis of it being an International treaty. This cannot go for a long. It is to be seen in totality,” he said.

Singh said Pakistan was sending terrorists to create disorder in the Kashmir Valley but does not understand that terrorism will affect it more.

“Pakistan does not understand that terrorism, which it sponsors, will ultimately affect it more. The country will not be able to keep itself united. We will expose the terror outfits in PoK,” he said.

On the unrest in Kashmir, he said normalcy was returning to the state and the central and state governments were taking all steps to restore peace.

“The situation is under control now. Pakistan is directly sending terrorists and its people to Jammu and Kashmir to create disorder,” he said.